Escambia County looking to 'reset' Contractor Competency Board after Matt Banks scandal

Escambia County is taking a closer look at a board charged with oversight of construction contractors in the county after an "unprecedented" amount of complaints against contractor Matt Banks took several months to compile before his license was revoked.

Last week, Escambia County revoked Banks' county-issued contractor's license after he failed to pay back customers for work he did not complete.

Banks, who owns Banks Construction, also lost his license in Santa Rosa County, filed for bankruptcy in federal court and was charged by the Pensacola Police Department with a contractor failing to pay a refund, a third-degree felony.

Another contractor, Jesse LaCoste, who owns LaCoste Construction Group LLC and is Banks' brother-in-law, also had his license revoked in both counties for failing to pay restitution to former clients.

The Escambia County Contractor Competency Board issued orders for both contractors to pay restitution or face loss of their license. However, it took several months and multiple hearings to get to that point.

In the meantime, Banks and LaCoste were able to continue to solicit business. Escambia County commissioners said changes should be made, so a similar situation does not happen in the future.

License revoked: Contractor Matt Banks' Escambia County license revoked for failure to pay restitution

Arrest: PPD: Okaloosa Sheriff's Office deputies arrest Escambia contractor Matthew Banks

"From the time that it sounds like there were very verifiable, documented losses, we had some number of months that there were still other unsuspecting people being taken advantage of," Commissioner Steven Barry said. "That's the concern."

The volunteer board is made up of nine members appointed by the County Commission, four in the contracting business, three "lay people," one business owner and one architect or engineer.

Several of the victims of the contractors spoke to the commission Thursday morning and said the board was too slow to act.

Allison Creed told the commission that the victims of the two contractors have been connecting with each other and are up to more than 100. She said she and her husband filed a case before the competency board in June 2020 against LaCoste, and it was not taken seriously.

"We were shut down that day, and if that complaint would have been submitted this year, in the last six months, it would have been taken seriously, and something would have been done because it's identical to everyone else's," Creed said. "… We're just made to feel crazy. And we've learned now we are not crazy."

Laurie Jones said Banks owes her $21,175 for an incomplete job.

"Banks Construction may be guilty of a lot of things, and he may have buried himself in this," Jones said. "But he was not by himself. ... The CCB is responsible for not suspending or revoking his license as early as possible. By not doing their jobs and by not having proper oversight, they handed him the shovel."

Escambia County Building Services Director Tim Tolbert, who advises the competency board, told the commission that the county will step up its efforts to educate the public about hiring contractors and what red flags to look out for such as a contractor wanting 50% upfront.

Allegations: Dozens of people allege Escambia contractor took their money but never fixed their homes

"In my experience, normally, you don't pay anything down, but I would probably be concerned with (a down payment) over 10%," Tolbert said.

County Attorney Alison Rogers said additional ethics training would be provided to the competency board members to know when to abstain from votes — and when not to abstain.

Rogers also said the county could create a webpage for the public to find contractors who have been disciplined by the board.

Commission Chairman Jeff Bergosh said the county should be notifying the public of contractors who have had complaints sustained against them and that there should be an automatic suspension if a contractor fails to pay restitution in a sustained complaint.

Abortion: Escambia County teen denied abortion highlights hurdles to care, advocates say

Home prices: Escambia County home prices inch up 0.5%, Santa Rosa County prices dip 2.6%

"That's what we have to do, and we put them on the wall of fame," Bergosh said. "That way folks that are going to hire people can see that."

Tolbert said there was a hesitation in revoking the license because it prevents the contractor from pulling a permit and doing work to make restitution.

Barry said that might work for contractors operating in "good faith," but when someone isn't, the board should be willing to act.

"I'm concerned if they couldn't tell that this was shenanigans by maybe June, I'm concerned about the ability to discern good operators from not-so-good operators," Barry said.

Tolbert said he couldn't speak for the board but said it was likely the board members were in shock because of the volume of complaints.

"It really is unprecedented," Tolbert said. "In my 29 years, I've never seen anything like it."

Commissioner Robert Bender said he was told that during one meeting of the board, public comment was moved until after Banks' case was heard, but many members of the public were there to speak about Banks.

"They didn't have an opportunity to speak before the board took action on a contractor, and so that tells me that the board did not have all the information until after the decision had been made," Bender said. "So I think that would be egregious if that occurred."

Bender said he wants the county to investigate ways to go after Banks' assets for restitution payments.

"I think the closest way to describe is like a Ponzi scheme, and especially if those down payments went for other things, I would want to see how we can go after his assets and get money back in the hands of our citizens," Bender said.

No final decisions were made Thursday, but Bergosh said a "reset" of competency board is coming.

"Something's broken in the system, and we're going to get it fixed," Bergosh said.

Jim Little can be reached at jwlittle@pnj.com and 850-208-9827.

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Escambia County looking to 'reset' Contractor Competency Board